This is my favorite book of the series, together with the movie adaptation.
While the first book centers around the game and the main characters' hometown, this one explores the expansion of the world. It slowly reveals other districts, and I like the journey out of the Capitol. While it's probably not easy to box areas into their specialties in the real world, it's not a far fetch too, especially in the Capitol's congregation system. For example, we have District 4 with their fishing industry, District 3 with their technology, District 8 with their textile; all these are mentioned in the passing but have and will become important points in the stories.
The powerful moment that is beautifully adapted into the movie is the speech scene on the platform when we see Rue's family and the incident in this District 11, the district that is dear to the main character because this is where her ally comes from. That is the moment I was sold for the adaptation.
We continue to follow the character's struggles as the Capitol's confrontation gets more direct and frontal. I appreciate this trope a lot, just like why Lannister is my favorite house. To put it simply, I enjoy reading about 'in-your-face' stabby villains, I enjoy sharp confrontational dialogs without the need to conceal the mutual dislikes of the characters, and yet, they are scaling each other up with respect while trying to appear unthreatened. In this case, it's between a teenage girl and the most powerful and cunning leader, a very stark opposite. And again, I need to emphasize that I don't get negative teenager's vibe, which is something I avoid like a plague, and that's why I enjoy the series.
I don't want to get too much into the movie adaptation, which has the advantage of portraying other angles that the main character is not aware of in the book, but they are implied directly and in between the line. In this book, those are adequate enough to tell the overall stories. Personally, I enjoy reading books written this way, inside a character's head. It's realistic that we don't always know everything, but there is enough information that readers are able to draw and stitch them into a complete story, just like real life. Some are assumptions, and some are proven facts.
Another factor that I really enjoy in this book is the victors. No, not the glamorous presentations, but it's interesting to read about things after winning the game. While it's shiny and polished on the front, the reality is just other rotten secrets behind, hidden from the ignorant Capitolians (?) who are too sheltered to read between the lines.
Other than that, the new characters are interesting; the introduction of Finnick, Joanna, Bette capture my attention straight away, while Plutarch shines in the movie.
There is one huge questionable aspect for the second half of the book for me, that it is sooooo easy for Katniss to die in the arena, Plutarch must be nuts to put that much faith in a few possibly rusty victors. But I would advise a willing suspension of disbelief that any other way would be less possible/more dangerous, and you are set to enjoy the book/movie.
Rating: 5 Forcefields out of 5 Arenas
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